My Daddy the Lion
by Skylar Windsong
Summary: Leon found a little orphan girl while on patrol in Traverse Town. He doesn't know why but he feels the need to protect her. She worms her way into his heart and he worms his way into hers. Well, it's nice to have a family.
1. Lola

**Hi there! Some of you may recognise me from Twisting and Turning. Most of you might have come here from there!**

**This is My Daddy the Lion, part of mega-upload day. It's an idea I had that wouldn't go away and I just had to write it! Don't expect regular updates but I'll try my best!**

**Feel free to check the other fic I uploaded today, Kingdom Hearts IV!**

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**Chapter one - Lola**

Twenty-five year old Squall 'Leon' Leonhart was having a rough day. The number of Heartless trying to invade Traverse Town had drastically increased. Sure he wasn't the only one with a weapon or combat experience, but he was the best fighter in the group of refugees, which meant patrolling was often his job. It annoyed him.

Leon walked through the alleyways of the large town with his friend Yuffie babbling on about something. Luckily for him, her chatter was one of the things he could easily block from his mind. As much as he tried, he still couldn't forget how he came here. He was only sixteen when Hollow Bastion was destroyed. Sixteen when he failed to save his parents and sister.

If only he could turn back time.

"Hey Leon! I'm going to head back to Cid's. Catch you there, right?" the hyperactive Yuffie asked.

"Sure," Leon shrugged.

He watched the teenager retreat through the alley. She was only six when she lost her family.

Sighing, Leon shouldered his gunblade and went in search of any more Heartless that saw fit to cause trouble. There weren't too many people who lived down here to begin with. All the bigger, better houses got filled in the massive surge of refugees from the past few months. Now there weren't as many trickling in. The gunblader didn't know what to make of it. Were fewer worlds falling into darkness or were there fewer people who managed to escape?

Maybe it was time he got back. There was no easy way to tell day or night in this world as the sky stayed dark, so the inhabitants had to rely on their internal body clocks to know when to eat or sleep. That and there were a bunch of clocks scattered around.

Turning to follow the path Yuffie had used barely five minutes ago, Leon heard a strange noise. A clatter and a scream. There was only one reason why anyone would scream.

"Heartless," he spat and ran to follow the noise.

Making sure his gunblade was ready, Leon emerged into yet another alleyway. But this one was a dead end. And where the Heartless were. Quickly taking in his surroundings, Leon saw a group of five Heartless attacking a young girl who was trying to fend them off with a stick.

"Tani!" a young voice called out.

Leon looked up and saw an even younger girl perched on some scaffolding. She was holding on for her life and watching as the Heartless attacked her companion.

She looked like she was only six.

Not wanting to waste another second, Leon ran into the fray. The Heartless didn't expect him and he made quick work of destroying the dark creatures. A scream from the scaffolding caught his attention. He'd missed two and they were slowly walking towards the younger girl. Swearing under his breath, Leon ran up the scaffolding towards the girl. He leapt over the Heartless and placed himself between them and the girl. He shot a couple of bullets through the one Heartless and decapitated the other. As they faded away, he turned to the girl behind him.

"They're gone now," he said, crouching down to meet her eyes. "Let's go check your friend is okay."

He was able to get a good look at her. She had auburn hair and hazel eyes that were lit up in fear. Her blue dress was slightly charred and torn. Her black shoes were all scuffed up as well. Leon wanted to curse Maleficent and her girl was too young. Too young to see the destruction the Heartless caused. Too young to lose her family and her home.

He offered her his hand. Still looking afraid, she took it. Leon stood up and sheathed his gunblade. Trying to be as gentle as he could, he lifted the little girl into his arms and carried her down the scaffolding. When safely on the ground, he placed her down. The first thing she did was run to the other girl, Tani.

Tani wasn't okay. The Heartless may not have stolen her heart, but they had injured her badly and she was now lying on the ground. There was a nasty gash on her stomach region and judging by the state of her clothes, she had lost a lot of blood. Leon gritted his teeth. He doubted that even Aerith could save this girl. And that was if he got her to his friend in time.

"Tani? Tani are you okay?" the little girl asked as Leon crouched down next to her and Tani.

"Kid, can you hear me?" he asked.

Her eyes were open but that didn't mean that she may be conscious. She only looked thirteen. Still too young to die.

"Yeah," Tani whispered weakly.

"Listen to me. Don't try and sleep. I'm going to try and get you to my friend. She can heal you up," Leon said.

"Don't… you won't save me," Tani said.

"Sis? Tani? Why are you crying?" the little girl asked.

"I'm not crying Lola," Tani smiled weakly. She directed her line of vision towards Leon. "Our world was destroyed… we're the last ones left… please… look after Lola."

"Sis? Why can't you look after me?" Lola cried.

Leon felt numb. She knew. She knew she was dying. Oh gods… she was what? Twelve? Thirteen? That was Aerith's age when their home was destroyed. That was his friend Cloud's age before he died. All too young… And now this dying girl… wanted him to look after her sister? He couldn't look after anyone… could he?

But her eyes… he stared her right in the eyes. He saw sadness, anger, fear, pleading.

The eyes he had when he lost his family.

"Okay," he whispered hoarsely.

"Thank you," Tani whispered back.

She gave one last look at Lola before taking one final breath. Then she went still. Dead. Her eyes were vacant and Leon didn't think he needed to check her heartbeat to tell that she was dead.

"Tani? Tani?" Lola asked. "TANI! SAY SOMETHING! GRAMMA SAID YOU NEED TO LOOK AFTER ME!"

The little girl screamed as she held on to her dead sister's hand. Leon quickly checked Tani's pulse. Gone. Lola kept on crying and begging for Tani to say something. The gunblader was unsure what to do. Back home, he had never really interacted with the younger children, with the exception of maybe once helping Kairi prank Even. There weren't many children in Traverse Town. Sure Yuffie had been about Lola's age when they came here, but she had to grow up fast (not that it showed sometimes when she was playing pranks and causing mischief). Leon put a hand gently on the child's shoulder.

"Tani can't say anything anymore. She's gone," he said quietly.

"G...gone?" Lola hiccupped.

"Yes. She's gone to sleep but she can't wake up anymore," Leon said.

"Like how G..Gramma said Mama and Papa went to sleep when I was a baby?" Lola asked.

Leon felt a pang of sympathy for the girl. She already didn't have parents. Her home had now been destroyed and her sister had died right in front of her.

"Yeah. Like that," Leon nodded.

Lola howled. She wanted Tani. She wanted Gramma. She wanted home.

"B..b...but Tani has to look after me!" she wailed.

"She can't. Not anymore," Leon explained.

Lola's sobs died down a little. In her young mind, she couldn't yet fully grab the concept of going to sleep and not waking up. It hadn't really happened to anyone she knew until now. As she cried, she thought about Tani and what she had said to the man beside her.

Leon watched the girl cry. Oh gods she was too young. Young enough that she could have even been his daughter. He gently moved his hand onto hers, making her turn her head towards him.

"My name is Leon. Your name is Lola right?" a nod in response. "How old are you?"

"Six," Lola hiccupped.

"I'm sorry that Tani's gone, Lola," Leon said sympathetically.

Lola stared at him with wide teary eyes. Leon seemed nice. He had brown hair, blue eyes and a weird line across his nose. He'd gotten rid of those bad things that had taken Gramma away and destroyed her home and then made Tani go to sleep and not wake up.

"Are you going to look after me now?" she asked him. Leon was taken aback. Lola continued. "Tani can't now and you said to her you would!"

Leon sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He was about to say that he could find someone better to look after her when a thought crossed his mind. Tani had asked _him_. And he knew that deep down, he could protect her. He could fight. And if anything happened, he was sure Cid, Aerith, Yuffie and Merlin could look after her as well.

And he had already said he would.

"Sure. I will," he said.

He lifted Lola's other hand away from Tani's still one. Once again he cursed Maleficent. She was behind the Heartless. She was responsible for Lola losing her family.

"Right now, I need to take you somewhere safer. Will you come with me?" he asked.

"Okay," Lola nodded.

Leon stood up but still held on to Lola's hand.

"I'm going to carry you. Is that okay?" he asked.

Lola simply nodded. Leon carefully put his arms around her and lifted her up. He instructed her to put his arms around his neck and to hook her legs around his chest, to which she complied. Leon then carefully twisted her so that she was on his back. He hooked his arms under her legs to make carrying her easier. Making sure she was comfortable, Leon set off through the alleyways, leaving Tani's body behind.

This was going to be fun to explain.

* * *

He walked through First District, ignoring the stares he was given. Right now, it was important to get Lola to Cid's store, where he said that he'd meet the others when done patrolling. He wanted Aerith to check Lola over, in case she'd sustained any injuries from when the Heartless had attacked her and Tani. He reached Cid's place without anyone coming up to him and asking questions. Carefully, he lowered Lola down to the ground.

"You're going to meet some of my friends in here. I'm going to get one of them to check if you aren't hurt. Is that okay?" Leon asked.

Lola nodded shyly. Sensing that she was still very upset and now nervous, Leon reached for her hand and placed it in his own, giving it a reassuring squeeze, hoping to calm the child's nerves. It worked and Lola flashed him a small smile. Leon pushed open the door to Cid's shop. They walked in.

"SHUT YER GODDAMN MOUTH!" was how they were greeted.

Cid berating Yuffie for talking too much, like normal.

Frightened by the shouting, Lola hid behind Leon, grabbing onto his leg. She looked up at her surroundings. They were in a shop. There was a scary blonde man who had just shouted. A girl a little bigger then Tani was looking angry at the man. A woman who was watching and laughing quietly. An old man with a pointy hat holding a book. Scared by all the unknown people, Lola clutched Leon's leg tighter. She might not have known him that long, but at least she knew him a little. The three turned and looked in their direction. Lola panicked and buried her face into Leon's leg.

Leon sighed. He'd wanted to introduce Lola to them without freaking her out. Cid had just killed all chance of that happening.

"Leon! You're back! Certainly took your time!" Yuffie exclaimed, her face jumping into a look of joy.

"What took ya so long?" Cid asked.

"Got sidetracked," Leon shrugged, a little unsure of how to introduce Lola.

"Who's that holding on to your leg?" Aerith asked, sharp as ever and noticing little Lola.

Cid and Yuffie looked downwards to see the small body glued to Leon's leg.

"AWW!" Yuffie squealed as she ran over. "Oh you're so cute! I'm Yuffie! What's your name?"

Scared by the teenage ninja's loudness and the sudden questions, Lola whimpered and burst into tears. Yuffie took a step back and looked around. This wasn't what she'd expected. Leon shot her a glare.

"Thanks Yuffie. She was already scared by Cid shouting as soon as we got here. Now you've made her cry," Leon snarled.

"I'm sorry!" Yuffie yelled over Lola's sobs.

Leon crouched down in order to be eye level with Lola. The sobbing girl looked at him through teary eyes.

"Lola? Don't cry. It's people are my friends. They won't hurt you. They can just be a bit stupid at times," he explained, holding his hand out. Lola slowly took it and Leon stood up. "Guys, this is Lola."

Cid, Yuffie, Aerith and Merlin all took a good look at the six year old, who tried to hide her face with Leon's hand. She didn't like them staring at her. Leon sighed.

"Lola, that blonde man over there is Cid-" "Hey there kid." "- you've just met Yuffie-" "Hi! Sorry about scaring you!" "-the old wizard is Merlin-" "Why hello there dear!" "-and finally the lady in the pink dress is Aerith." "Hello."

Lola looked around at the new people. They didn't look so scary now and they were all smiling nicely at her the same way Gramma and Tani used to. Feeling a lot more comfortable now, she gave them a small smile and a wave, but still wouldn't let go of Leon's hand. The gunblader smiled a little.

"Aerith? Could you check if Lola's hurt?" he asked.

"Of course," Aerith smiled, taking a step forwards, making Lola shrink back.

"Lola, don't worry," Leon sighed. "Aerith's just going to make sure you're okay and heal you up if you're not. I explained this earlier, remember?"

Lola looked up at him and then at Aerith. Still refusing to let go of Leon's hand, she took a tentative step towards the healer. Still a little afraid, she took a few more until she was standing right in front of Aerith. Not once did she let go of Leon's hand. Aerith smiled warmly before casting a few spells.

"Just a couple of small cuts and minor burns. Nothing I can't fix," she said, casting a Cura.

Lola felt warmth travel through her body and the hurting that she was feeling just vanished when the Aerith lady said that funny word. It felt nice. She decided that she like Aerith. Leon had saved her from the bad things and Aerith had taken away the hurt. The little girl yawned.

"Sleepy," she said, tired by the day's events.

"Do you want to go to sleep?" Leon asked.

"Yeah," Lola replied, yawning a little more and rubbing her eyes with her free hand.

"C'mon. Let's get you to the hotel," Leon smiled, lifting her on to his back again.

The small group left the shop and made their way to the hotel that they lived in. On the way there, Lola fell asleep, lying on Leon's back. Yuffie 'awwed' at the sight. The gunblader took no notice of her. He was just glad that Lola was able to rest. They walked through the streets and into the hotel.

"Where should she sleep?" Yuffie asked. "I can totally give up my room for her!"

"We've got plenty of spare rooms here. She can have the one next to mine," Leon said as they climbed a flight of stairs.

"Is that so you can go check up on yer little daughter in the night, make sure she ain't having nightmares?" Cid teased.

Leon chose to ignore him as Merlin kindly opened the door to the room next to Leon's. The gunblader muttered a thanks and walked in. Carefully, he placed Lola down onto the bed and pulled the covers over her.

"Good night," he whispered to her sleeping form.

It was strange how he hadn't even known her for a day and yet he surprisingly cared for her.

Leon left the room and closed the door behind him. Hopefully she'd stay asleep until morning. The first thing they'd do the next day would be getting her some clothes to wear.

"You still haven't told us how you met her," Aerith said quietly.

"It was when I was on my way back from patrol. I heard a scream," Leon began. "I followed it and I found the Heartless attacking two girls."

"Two girls?" Yuffie asked.

"Right. Lola, and her sister Tani. Lola was up on some scaffolding and Tani was trying to fend them off with a stick. I jumped in, taking out the Heartless. I got Lola down from the scaffolding and we went to check on Tani. Her heart was safe but…. the Heartless injured her, badly. She was lying on the ground, bleeding," Leon took in a deep breath as he explained the next part. "She only looked thirteen and she _knew_ she was dying. Tani asked me… to look after Lola."

"And then she died?" Cid asked.

"Yeah. She died. Right in front of us," Leon said, sitting down on a nearby chair. "Lola is six. _Six_. Her parents died when she was a baby. Her home was destroyed and her grandmother's heart stolen. Now she's seen her sister die in front of her."

Aerith put a hand on his shoulder. No wonder Leon already seemed so protective of Lola. The loss of their home had weighed heavily on all of them, especially Leon, who after many years of living with the fact that he hadn't been able to save it, eventually changed his name, hoping he could become a different person. Now there was someone else to protect, and now he had the power to do it.

"Well let me know when you adopt her," Merlin said, before teleporting off to his own room.

Leon stared at the spot where the wizard had just been standing. Adopt… Lola?

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**Hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Review/follow/fave and I'll give you virtual cookies!**


	2. Settling in

**Sorry about not updating! But here's the next chapter of My Daddy the Lion! Now with 150% more Lola cuteness!**

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**Chapter two - Settling in**

Lola woke up screaming. She'd had a bad dream. There was lots of darkness and those things had taken away Gramma then made Tani go away. Then those things made their way towards her and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't run away. They came closer and closer until finally she woke up. She looked around, finding herself in a room she didn't recognise, in a bed she didn't remember going to sleep on. The little girl screamed in fear.

Leon woke up as soon as the screaming started. Quickly pulling on a shirt, he ran out of his room and into Lola's. It had been a good call to put her in the room next to his. He ran over to the bed and sat down next to the screaming girl, holding her hand.

"Hey, Lola. It's okay. You're safe. It's okay," he murmured gently, trying to calm the six year old down.

Lola stopped screaming and began sobbing quietly instead. She looked up at Leon, who was smiling gently at her. Comforted by his presence, she flung her arms around him and buried her head into his chest. Leon was taken by surprise. Were little kids supposed to do this? He turned his head slightly to see to see Yuffie standing in the doorway, trying hard to suppress laughter. He shot her a glare, making her back away slightly. Rolling his eyes, Leon turned his head towards Lola.

"Had a bad dream," she said in between sobs, her voice muffled by Leon's t-shirt.

"It's alright. The dream's over now. Do you want to talk about it?" he asked, placing a hesitant hand on her head, the way he could remember his mother doing when he was little and had nightmares.

"No," Lola whispered, the sobs dying down a little. She pulled away from Leon, but still held on to his hands. "Where are we?"

"This is the hotel," Leon explained. "It's where me and my friends live. You fell asleep on the way here and I tucked you into the bed when we got here."

Lola looked around. The room wasn't so scary anymore. It was blue, her favourite colour. The colour of her dress. She looked down at her dress. It had weird black marks on it and it smelt a little funny. Leon noticed her looking down at it.

"Do you want to change into something else? Something a little less worn out and burnt?" he asked, getting a shy nod in return. "Wait here. I'll get an old shirt of mine for you. It may be a little big but it will do."

Giving Lola another smile, Leon quickly left the room and entered his own one, searching for a clean shirt that wouldn't be too big on the little girl. He found one, an old grey t-shirt he hadn't worn in a while because it was slightly too small for him. Perfect. And it was clean. Even more perfect. Leon quickly made his way back into Lola's room, where she had been staring at the door, waiting for him to return. He handed her the t-shirt and turned around so she could change in privacy. Lola quickly pulled her dress off and pulled the grey shirt Leon had given her on. She was very proud of the fact that she needed no help to get dressed, something that many of her friends did need.

"Thank you," Lola said, yawning slightly.

Leon turned around again. The shirt wasn't too big on her. He carefully picked up Lola's dress and placed it on one of the chairs in the hotel room. Lola watched while yawning. Leon quickly checked the time, it was nearly midnight. He gave Lola one last smile as she crawled under the covers before heading to the door.

"Wait!" Lola called out.

"What is it?" Leon asked, turning around.

"I'm scared. I don't want those monsters to come back," Lola said, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"They can't hurt you here," Leon said, walking towards Lola's bed.

"They might!" the six year old protested. "They came before when I was asleep!"

It took Leon a second to figure out that she wasn't talking about whatever nightmare she'd had.

"Do you want me to stay here?" Leon sighed, knowing it was a dumb question. Lola nodded. "Okay. I'll stay here and chase off any monsters that come to attack you."

"Thank you!" Lola smiled, quickly hugging him.

She snuggled under the covers, happy that Leon was going to keep her safe from monsters. The gunblader sat down on the bed next to her. Luckily it was a large enough bed that he could sit on it and not disturb Lola. The little girl slowly moved closer to him and snuggled against his body. Leon sighed a little. He'd stay until he was sure that she was asleep, then he'd go back to sleep in his own room.

Lola fell asleep five minutes later. Leon followed her only a minute after.

* * *

"Shh! You'll wake them!" a voice whispered.

Leon opened his eyes. This wasn't his room. It took him a few seconds to realise that he was in Lola's room. Said little girl was snuggled against his chest and his arm was around her, keeping her safe. Leon figured he must have gone to sleep while keeping lookout for 'monsters'. She shifted a little as Leon sat up, but didn't wake.

Oh, and Cid and Yuffie were holding a camera.

"You have ten seconds to get out and destroy any photos you've taken, or you will wish you were never born," Leon threatened.

Cid and Yuffie didn't need telling twice.

"Goo' mornin'" Lola yawned, waking up.

She sat up and moved to the side of the bed.

"Good morning," Leon greeted, standing up.

"Did you keep the monsters away?" Lola asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah," Leon said.

"Thank you," Lola smiled, yawning slightly again.

Leon smiled back before moving over to open the curtains. In a way, there wasn't much point, due to Traverse Town being so dark, even during daytime. Lola noticed that even though it was morning, it was dark. There was no sun up yet. Why did Leon say it was morning?

"Why's it still dark?" she asked jumping off the bed.

"This world is always dark, even during the day. You need a clock to tell the time," Leon told her.

Lola mumbled an 'okay', not really understanding it. She'd just have to get used to the stars being out during the day. She hoped they didn't make her fall asleep. Stars were nighttime things, not daytime. But Leon was awake so maybe they could be both. She was about to ask some more questions when her stomach grumbled.

"Do you want to see if breakfast is ready?" Leon asked, hearing.

"Yeah," Lola nodded. She followed Leon out of the blue bedroom. "Is that my bedroom?"

"If you want it to be," Leon replied.

"Uh-huh! It's pretty! And blue!" Lola giggled.

"Do you like blue?" Leon asked, smiling a little.

"Yeah!" Lola beamed.

Leon made a mental note to get her some clothes later, and make sure that some of them were blue. A few other refugees had stalls that sold things like clothes. He could try and see if any of them could make or find some clothes for Lola. Internally, he sighed. There was only one stall he knew of that sold decent clothes. But knowing the owner, the second she saw Lola, the number of outfits they needed for her would increase. A lot.

The two walked through the hotel to the kitchen where they could see Aerith making some breakfast. Well, sort of making it. She was just pooping some toast in a toaster and making bowls of cereal. Nothing that major. Cid and Yuffie were sitting down at the table, arguing about something. Merlin was probably still asleep. Scrooge McDuck, who also lived in the hotel was another one who was probably asleep. Leon and Lola sat down at two spare seats.

"Hello you two, did you sleep well?" Aerith greeted them.

"Yeah," Leon mumbled while Lola just nodded.

"What do you want for breakfast?" Aerith asked.

"Cereal sounds fine," Leon shrugged. "What about you Lola?"

"Err… can I have some toast please?" she requested shyly.

"Of course," Aerith smiled, placing some toast in the toaster.

Yuffie squealed slightly. Lola was just too cute! And she still had those photos… wait? Did you seriously think that Yuffie Kisaragi would get rid of potential blackmail material, especially when it was to do with Leon? There was the downside that there weren't many people to actually threaten to show them to, which sort of made the threat void, but still. There was that blonde boy who hung around Leon back in Hollow Bastion. Maybe if they saw him when they finally got to go home she could show him?

As various people started to eat, Scrooge and Merlin came in, greeted everyone and started to eat their own breakfast. Leon finished his cereal and began to speak.

"We need to talk," he said to everyone in general. "First of all, Scrooge, this is Lola. Lola, this is Scrooge. He lives here with us."

"Greetings lassie," Scrooge said, nodding his head at the shy six year old who waved back.

"Because Lola's living with us now, things are going to have to change a little," Leon continued on. "Cid, no more swearing. Aerith, the sugar thing has to stop. It's gone on long enough. Scrooge, no more getting drunk in the middle of the night. Merlin, no more supplying Scrooge with alcohol. And the excuse 'but he says the funniest things' does not fly here. We have a little girl living with us now."

"I'm not little!" Lola protested. "I'm six years old!"

More barely suppressed squealing from Yuffie and Aerith. Leon sweatdropped. What was he supposed to say.

"I know," Leon said. "But these are stupid things that the others do and I don't want you to have to tell them off all the time."

He must have said the right thing because Lola giggled.

"Moving on," he sighed. "Somebody is going to have to stay behind and look after Lola while the others are on patrol. We can't leave her here alone."

Lola tugged on his sleeve. "But why can't you look after me?"

"I need to help keep the Heartless out of the town," Leon explained. "I won't be on patrol all the time though. But when I am the others can look after you."

The six year old nodded. Leon was still looking after her, like Tani told him to do. And his friends were going to help. She hoped that they were nice. They were friend with Leon. So they must be nice. And they were letting her live with them and they let her have the pretty blue room. That was kind of them.

* * *

Lola was holding Leon's hand. He and Miss Yuffie were taking her shopping. She had to put her dress on even if it smelt a little funny from all the fire. But they were going to get new clothes for her. She hoped they were blue. Leon had mentioned going to a stall in First District but she wasn't sure what First District was.

He'd explained that the place they were in was called Traverse Town. When worlds were taken over by Heartless, the mean things that took away her home, people who escaped like her would arrive in Traverse Town. Heartless still attacked though, which is why Leon and his friends did patrols so that they didn't hurt anybody. It was a little confusing but Lola could just about understand.

"Oh! Leon! Here for new clothes?" a smiling lady asked. "Mother's asleep so I'm looking after the stall."

"Not for me Tiana," Leon said. "This is Lola. She's the one in need of clothes."

"So this is the little cutie that has the whole town talking," Tiana giggled. "Seeing you carry a little girl was quite a sight."

"Not now Tiana," Leon rolled his eyes. "What can you do in terms of clothes for Lola?"

"We only have a few children's clothes. I can always ask Mother to make some more," Tiana sized Lola up. "How old?"

"Six," Lola mumbled as the lady looked at her.

"Hmm…." Tiana searched through the stall. "Hold these against her."

She handed Leon a few clothes. He bent down and held them against Lola. They looked as if they'd fit her. And anything was better than the worn out dress she was currently wearing. Plus some of them were blue. That would make Lola happy. He noticed there weren't any nightclothes. Looked like Lola would still have to wear some of his shirts.

"They look fine," Leon said. "How much?"

"Nothing," Tiana smiled. "There's no children here except for Lola. Mother had said that if she ever saw a child in need of clothes she wouldn't charge. It wouldn't be right. I'll let her know to make some more clothes."

"Thanks Tiana," Leon said sincerely.

"It's nothing," the young lady laughed. "But word of warning. The whole town is going to be pestering you with questions."

Leon sighed as he put the clothes into the bag he'd brought with them. He really should have expected that. He thanked Tiana again before leaving. Yuffie stayed behind because she needed some more clothes. The joys of growth spurts. Lola clutched his hand as they walked through Traverse Town. Everybody was looking at her. She didn't like it.

"Why are they staring?" she asked Leon.

"Because they don't know who you are. They're curious," Leon explained, leaving the part about them being idiots with nothing better to do out.

"Where are all the other children?" Lola said, seeing nobody her age.

"Not many children escape the Heartless," Leon said simply.

It was a sad thing but unfortunately true. Children and their parents were often the first to have their hearts stolen and turned into Heartless. It was sad. The children couldn't run and parents stayed behind for them (not that there was anything wrong with that). But it meant there was a lack of any children in Traverse Town. Lola was the youngest in the community. Leon knew that would be hard on her. There wouldn't be many people for her to make friends with. He sighed.

"Leon?" Lola piped up. "How come Scrooge can talk? He's a duck."

"Um…." great. She really was a curious one. "I don't know. But I guess on some worlds animals are different and can talk. I met a talking mouse once."

Lola didn't ask any more about it, which Leon was glad for. But soon he felt another tug at his sleeve. What now?

"Um… can I have a piggyback ride?" Lola asked shyly. "My feet are sore."

"Lola, I'm sure they're aren't that bad," Leon sighed.

"Please?" Lola begged, her eyes wide.

How could Leon resist the cute face of doom? He crouched down to let her get on. Thank Hyne the bag could just hang from his elbow. Lola giggled as he got up and began to walk. Leon smiled slightly. He knew that she was a bit too young to fully understand the concept of death but he was glad that Tani's death wasn't affecting her too badly. He understood that Lola was still upset but at least she could smile and laugh like any other kid.

"Do you want me to go faster?" he asked.

"Yeah!" Lola laughed.

Leon sped up his pace so that he was jogging, but not too fast so that he didn't let go. Lola let out a shriek of joy. People stared and laughed but by now Yuffie had spread word about Lola through Traverse Town. It was kinda cute to see the stoic Leon give a little girl a piggyback ride.

And he wouldn't admit it, but he was enjoying himself to. Maybe what Merlin said about adopting Lola wasn't too far off.

* * *

**I didn't realise until today that the first ever Vocaloids released were a pair called LEON and LOLA. I kid you not, I was unaware of that fact until seeing it somewhere on tumblr. Lola was really named after the little girl from Charlie and Lola, a show I watched as a kid. But yeah. You can look that up.**

**Review/Follow/Fave and I will give you cookies!**


	3. Body

**Sorry for taking so long! This chapter was hard to write in some ways, but easy in others. It's one that needed to be written, partly because losing someone when you're that young is hard to cope with, and you'll always look for a way to get them back. Trust me. Been there, done that.**

* * *

**Chapter three - Body**

"Tada!" Lola exclaimed, running out of the bedroom.

She was wearing some of the new clothes that they had bought for her. A white t-shirt, a blue skirt and some white socks. Her t-shirt had a blue and lilac butterfly motif on it. Unfortunately, she still had the same scuffed up shoes on. The little girl spun around in pride, showing off her new outfit to Leon, Yuffie and Aerith. She stopped spinning and grinned at them.

"You like them?" Leon asked.

"Uh-huh!" Lola nodded.

"You look so cute!" Yuffie squealed.

"Thank you," Lola beamed, used to Yuffie now.

Leon smiled at the sight. Lola had brightened up at having the new clothes. It was a nice distraction for her. They looked cute on her as well. Lola saw him smiling and gave him a small one back. Aerith and Yuffie gushed over her and how cute she looked.

"Here, let me help you do your hair nice," Aerith offered, holding up a hairbrush and a blue ribbon.

Lola walked over to Aerith and sat on the stool in front of her. The healer carefully brushed out the little girl's auburn hair. It wasn't that long, only went down just past her shoulders. Aerith carefully tied a small section into a ponytail at the side of her head, while the rest was left loose. The healer held up a small mirror. Lola giggled at her reflection.

"Thank you," she giggled. "Leon, do I look nice?"

"Er…" Leon faltered. How do you answer when a six year old asks you? "Yeah. You do look nice."

"Thank you!" Lola beamed, hugging him quickly.

It took all of Leon's self control not to straight up murder the girls, who were giggling like maniacs. Lola gave another twirl, pleased with her new hairstyle and outfit. She giggled again. Yuffie began to take some photos. Despite himself, Leon wanted to laugh. Barely any time with them and Lola was already accepted as one of the family.

"Leon! We need you downstairs!" Scrooge McDuck yelled.

Leon and the others rushed downstairs to the lobby of the hotel. A small group of people were gathered around something. Cid was one of them. He stood talking with Ashe, another refugee. They spotted Leon and beckoned him over.

"I was the alleys with a few people and we found this," Ashe explained. "Nobody knows who it is."

The group moved so that the newcomers could see what they were gathered around. Lying on a makeshift stretcher was the body of a young teenage girl. Leon felt his heart beat faster.

"We think the Heartless did it. There was nobody else nearby and there signs of a small struggle," Ashe continued. "She's dead."

Lola wanted to see what everybody was looking at. She tried to push past Leon. The gunblader tried to stop her from seeing by grabbing her arm. Determined to see what was happening, Lola managed to twist her arm out of his grasp. She rushed forwards to the stretcher.

"T…Tani?" she whispered.

Aerith glanced at Lola, before turning to Leon.

"Her sister?" she asked.

"Yeah," Leon murmured.

"Isn't this the girl who you found?" Ashe asked, getting a nod in return. "So the body is her sister?"

Desperate to have her sister back, Lola began to shake Tani's limp arm. The dead teen didn't move, but Lola wasn't ready to accept that Tani was gone. They'd found her right? Finding things meant you got them back…. right? Tani was gonna wake up. She had to wake up and then they could stay in Traverse Town together and Leon could look after them both. Tears blossomed in her eyes.

"Sis? Wake up!" she cried.

Pushing past the onlookers, Leon knelt down next to Lola and put a hand on her shoulder. He could feel her shaking with tears.

"She's not going to wake up. You know that Lola," he said gently.

"B...but she… she got found an...and that means… I..I get her back!" Lola sobbed.

The sight of her sister's body distressed her. Leon could see the tears roll down her cheeks. He put an arm around her in comfort. He needed to get her away from the body. He could talk to Cid about burying Tani later.

"Come on. Let's go," Leon muttered, picking the crying Lola up.

Crying loudly, she buried her head into his chest, muffling her sobs somewhat. She wanted Tani back. Leon began to carry her out the room, ignoring the staring group. He paused as he passed Aerith and Cid. He nodded towards the body. They nodded back, understanding. They'd find a way to keep it safe until they could bury her. Leon mouthed a thank you as he left the room, still carrying Lola.

"So that's the Lola that I've heard about," Ashe commented it. "She seems to have warmed up to Leon."

"He found her and saved her. I guess she must trust him," Aerith shrugged.

"I have photos of him giving her a piggyback ride if you want them," Ashe smirked. "That's an image I never want to forget. The stoic Leon carrying a little girl. How old?"

"Six," Cid answered, while moving Tani's body. "But you must remember, she ain' little."

Ashe giggled slightly. "I'll be sure not to forget."

She shared a glance with Yuffie and Merlin.

"Is there a betting pool on how long it will take for him to adopt her?"

Several people got their wallets out.

* * *

Leon carried Lola up to her bedroom. The girl was still crying, still upset. He carefully lowered her down onto her bed and sat down next to her. She kept on crying. Eventually, the sobs died down a little. Lola managed to slow her breathing down and wiped her eyes slightly. She looked up at Leon with wide eyes.

"Do I get her back?" she asked quietly.

"No. I'm sorry," Leon replied, bowing his head.

"She promised Gramma to stay with me," Lola sniffled. "She's not allowed to go."

Leon held her hand as she tried to come to grips with the fact that Tani had in fact gone, allowed to or not. Death was hard, especially when someone you love dies. Lola was six. She knew that people went to sleep and she knew sometimes they didn't wake up. She knew that they were gone. But she never thought it could happen to Tani. Leon knew how she was feeling.

"I know. My sister wasn't allowed to go either," he said.

"You got a sister?" Lola asked.

"Yeah. But the Heartless stole her heart. She'd promised my parents to look after me, even though I could look after myself. But they attacked and she jumped in front of me and they took her instead," Leon said.

"Why do they hurt people?" Lola asked, curiosity returning full-force.

"They don't know anything else," Leon sighed. "A mean woman called Maleficent is in charge of them. She's the reason my world was destroyed. The reason why your world was destroyed."

Lola was silent for a few seconds. "So she's mean and the reason why Tani's gone?"

A nod of confirmation. Lola stared down at her hands for a while. Tani was gone and she couldn't change that. The mean Maleficent woman made her Heartless take Tani away. They took Leon's big sister away as well. And everybody's homes. Now she was scared that they'd take her away as well.

"What if they take me away?" she asked, looking fearfully up at Leon.

"I won't let them. I'll never let them," he replied. "I promised to look after you. They'll never hurt you."

Comforted by his words, Lola hugged Leon. He was going to look after her. He was strong, so the Heartless won't hurt her if he stopped them.

* * *

Everyone sans Yuffie and Cid sat down in the large kitchen of the hotel. The missing pair were currently on patrol. Ashe's group had left earlier. Tani's body had been moved to a storage room that was hopefully cold enough to keep the body in for a short while. Lola hadn't said another word about it to anyone. She was still upset, but was feeling better after her talk with Leon. The gunblader hadn't gone on patrol that day. Ashe, one of the few people with decent enough fighting ability, offered to join with Aerith in his place.

"This tastes really nice!" Lola exclaimed.

They were eating a meal of just some simple spaghetti bolognese, a recipe that a cook from another world had shared with the large group of refugees. It was easy, it was simple and you could freeze it so that you could later have some more. And it was something that you could easily make lots of, which was great considering the hotel gang had a new member.

"I'm glad you like it," Merlin smiled. Surprisingly, he was a very good cook.

"You never had spaghetti bolognese before?" Leon asked her, surprised.

"Nope," Lola shook her head.

"Maybe they didn't have it on Lola's world," Aerith said.

The group finished up their meal as Cid and Yuffie came in.

"Few down Second District. Couple in the alleys," Cid said, grabbing a bowl of food.

"We kicked their as… butts!" Yuffie quickly changed her choice of words when Leon glared at her.

Aerith rolled her eyes slightly. That girl was going to learn a lot of new words. Yuffie may not swear that much, but when she did her mouth would just keep on rolling. Scrooge swore when he got drunk (so she'd have to warn anyone who sold alcohol to not sell to him or Merlin). And Cid Highwind had no profanity filter at all.

"Spag bol? We had this two nights ago!" Yuffie complained.

"Yuffie, there wasn't much else," Merlin sighed. "Spaghetti bolognese is a perfectly edible meal. You shouldn't criticise it."

"Besides, the lassie seems to like it," Scrooge commented.

Yuffie was about to say something snarky but saw Lola smiling shyly. Her cuteness detector squealed. Any qualms about spag bol were forgotten. Immediately.

"We bumped inta Fran. Said she found a small little patch o' field where we could bury the body," Cid said.

The room went silent. There had been an unofficial pact not to mention Tani.

"Lola? Would you like it for Tani to be buried?" Leon asked.

She thought about it. Leon had explained what that was to her. They'd let Tani sleep in the ground. And her body would be safe there. Slowly, she nodded.

"Okay."

* * *

The next day, a small grave had been dug out. Overnight, Merlin had used magic to create a coffin of sorts. Fran, a friend of Ashe's, had shown them to the small field near Fifth District. Somehow, the plantlife in the field had managed to thrive.

The grave now dug out, Leon and Cid carefully lowered the coffin in. Lola watched in silence. She looked around her. Small little pictures and crosses and other things were dotted around the field. That Fran lady had said something about the field being where refugees remembered those lost to the Heartless. But there weren't many bodies buried in the ground like Tani's because they got turned into something else.

No matter how many times the others explained, she still didn't get it.

Leon climbed out and put a hand on her shoulder, watching tears flow from the little girl's eyes. Her sobs grew louder. No child should watch their family die. Never. Nobody should be hurt like that.

Silently, he swore to protect her. And never let the Heartless hurt her again.

* * *

**Omake - Leon! I'm bored!**

Three words was all it took. Now he was scared. He remembered a bored, six year old Yuffie. Leon gulped. He prayed to Hyne that Lola wouldn't get as annoying as Yuffie did. So he walked over, hoping he could find something to cure the boredness.

It had been about a week since the burial. Lola was coping. There were times she'd just go quiet, times where the tears would come and the only person who could calm her down was Leon. There weren't so many nightmares, but still nights where Leon ended up having to 'guard' her from Heartless. But otherwise, Lola would smile and giggle and act like most kids her age. She would get shy and clam up a little around the many strangers in Traverse Town, only comfortable with Leon's group. But there were changes. She was getting used to regular visitors, like Ashe and Fran, Tiana and her mother, Eudora.

They'd all taken it in turns to look after her. And everyone except Leon had found a way to keep her occupied while the hunt for something for her to play with was on. No kids in town, no toys in town.

Yuffie would play Hide and Seek with her, racing through the hotel, making her giggle. Merlin kept her entertained with small magic displays (but Leon hadn't let him teach her anything yet; they didn't need the hotel blown up). Cid would try and make a few toys out of junk items in the shop, and that had been fun. Aerith would make up and tell her stories.

But Leon was yet to find something he could do to keep Lola's boredom away. Which is why he dreaded hearing those three words.

"Can we play?" Lola begged. "Please?"

"What do you want to do?" Leon sighed.

Lola thought about it for a second. She knew Leon didn't know how to play very many games. Yuffie had told her. Plus he was a grown up and grown ups didn't like playing games sometimes. She kept on thinking about it for a while.

"I know! You can tell me things! Stories!" she exclaimed.

"I don't know many stories," Leon sweat-dropped.

"Then answer my questions!" Lola replied smugly. Finally! She could get someone to explain things to her.

Leon knew he was going to regret this.

"Fine…"

"What's the funny line on your face?"

"My scar? It's…." he paused. "Sometimes when you get a cut, it doesn't fade away properly when it heals, and it makes scars. I was fighting Heartless and one of them managed to attack me and give me the scar."

"Why is your sword so funny? It's not like the swords the grown-ups from my world have."

"My sword is also a gun," he said. Maybe this wouldn't be too bad.

"What does $%#! mean?" Lola asked, tilting her head slightly.

Leon jumped slightly, hearing that kind of language come from a six year old, who probably had no idea what she was saying. He shakily stared at Lola, who stared back expectantly. The gunblader took a deep breath.

"Where did you hear that?" Leon asked, but he knew the answer.

"Uncle Cid," Lola beamed. "He said it when Heartless were outside the shop."

Cid Highwind was a dead man.

"Uncle Cid?" Leon questioned.

"He told me to call him that! He said it was better than being called Grandad Cid," Lola explained.

"Well, 'Uncle Cid' had said a very bad word. And you shouldn't repeat it," Leon replied. "He was being very bad."

"So are we gonna take away his dessert?" Lola grinned. "Can I have it? Please?"

"Sure," Leon laughed. "You can."

Lola smiled back. Free dessert! And it would probably be made by Merlin, who made the best food. But something was still bugging her slightly.

"You haven't told me what the word means."

"I'll tell you when you're older. You won't understand it right now."

"Okay."

…

"Can I have a piggyback? Please?"

Cue puppy dog eyes.

"Fine."

* * *

**There won't be so much sadness in the next chapter, promise. I just needed to show what happened in the end to Tani's body... as well as sneak in the bit mention Leon's sister (no prize for guessing who FFVIII fans)... and get Ashe to cameo.**

**The omake was something that I needed to write, but couldn't fit in into a chapter so... **

**Next chapter will be up soon. While you're at it, feel free to check out Kingdom Hearts IV, another fic of mine. Lola appears in it!**


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